The present invention relates to a method for controlling a display, an associated device, and a computer program product.
A wide variety of portable devices include screens to display information; examples include (but are not limited to) mobile phones, smartphones, tablets and wearable devices (such as ‘smartwatches’). These devices are generally powered by an on-board battery, which can only provide power for a finite time period. One of the principal drains of battery power is the display screen, particularly those on devices with large, bright screens.
In order to conserve battery life it is desirable to minimise the power consumption of the display. For this reason, many devices have a ‘sleep’ mode whereby the screen is turned off after a predetermined period of inactivity.
Another method of reducing display power consumption by a screen is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,194,092 B2 which describes a method for processing pixels on the display to filter out particularly energy intensive aspects (such as white backgrounds). Such processing may however have a detrimental impact on a user's experience.
An alternative method of reducing display power consumption would therefore be desirable.